Money talks: IPs getting results, raises

January 12th, 2015

With rapidly expanding duties in the hospital and a wealth of consulting opportunities beyond, infection preventionists have long had job security at a somewhat stressful price. Federal and state regulators are demanding health care associated infection (HAI) data while consumers have the increasing expectation that all infections are preventable. Such forces have ratcheted up the pressure, but IPs have responded with a powerful bottom-line result: rates of key HAIs are falling nationally. This success has positioned the profession as a “winner” in healthcare reform and economic discussions, but is that translating down to the individual program level? Though perhaps not to the degree deserved, there are some good signs for IPs. For one, 65% of those responding to the annual Hospital Infection Control & Prevention salary survey reported they received a raise in the last year. Not bad when one is working in a badly bruised economy, though it must be said that the vast majority of the wage hikes were of the modest variety. Overall 59% reported an increase of 1% to 3%, while 6% were compensated an additional 4% to 6%. Unfortunately, another 28% of IPs reported no raises and 7% suffered a pay cut. Our 2011 survey found that that IPs were drawing a median salary in the $70,000 to $79,999 range. For more details see our annual salary survey and economic report as a special supplement in the January 2012 issue of HIC.